The present invention relates to wireless taillight systems for vehicles, whereby a towed vehicle is wirelessly connected to a towing vehicle such that at least one of running, turning or stopping lights from the towing vehicle are transmitted to the towed vehicle. More specifically, the present invention relates to improvements in the operating systems for such wireless systems.
Conventional towing light assemblies are designed to address the problem occurring when a trailer, implement or other vehicle (hereinafter “towed vehicle”) is being towed by a tow vehicle, the running, stop and/or turn lights of the tow vehicle are obstructed by the towed vehicle. Many jurisdictions require that the towed vehicle be equipped with supplemental indicator lights for signaling the intentions of the tow vehicle to other traffic. Accordingly, many towed vehicles are equipped with wired-in taillight systems including a connector, such as a jack configured for interfacing with the electrical system of the tow vehicle such that the towed vehicle's lighting system is synchronized with that of the tow vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,100,801 discloses a radio controlled light bar including a tow vehicle unit which is adapted to be electrically connected to the lighting system of the vehicle, and a trailer unit attached to the towed vehicle. The tow vehicle unit includes an analog to RF frequency converter, an RF oscillator, a modulator and a four-channel 900 MHz radio transmitter. The trailer unit includes a radio receiver, a decoder, an amplifier and a managing circuit. In operation, a light signal from the vehicle is converted from analog to RF by the frequency converter. The modulator impresses the light signal onto a carrier frequency as provided by the RF oscillator, and the radio transmitter transmits the signal through one of the four channels or frequencies. Each of the channels of the transmitter is dedicated to one or more of the signals for indicating braking, taillight, and left and right turning of the vehicle.
In the trailer unit, the radio receiver receives the signal transmitted from the tow vehicle unit. The decoder then demodulates the received signal from the RF oscillating frequency and decodes the signal into the light signal received from the vehicle, i.e., braking, taillight or turning. The signal managing circuit then outputs the light signal to the different light elements depending on the type of signal received.
A problem with such conventional units is that in some cases, interference is received from other wireless transmitters on nearby vehicles on the roadway, resulting in improper or faulty signals transmitted to the towed vehicle, with the resulting potential for misleading lighting displayed by the towed vehicles.